Australasia
Australia's AirTree closes third fund at $188m
Australia’s AirTree Ventures has closed its third fund at A$275 million ($188 million) with substantial contributions from local superannuation funds.
PropertyGuru abandons Australia IPO
Private equity-backed Southeast Asian online real estate portal PropertyGuru has decided not to proceed with its A$380 million ($256 million) IPO in Australia, citing market uncertainty.
Australia's Athena Home Loans gets $48m Series C
Australian financial technology start-up Athena Home Loans has raised A$70 million ($48 million) in Series C funding from a group of investors led by AustralianSuper.
PE-owned Latitude cancels Australia IPO
Australia and New Zealand consumer lending business Latitude Financial has abandoned plans for an IPO that would have facilitated partial exits for its private equity owners.
LP interview: AustralianSuper
Internalizing management is a priority for AustralianSuper across all asset classes. In private equity, this means forging relationships with a concentrated pool of managers and pursuing co-investment
Australia’s Canva raises $85m at $3.2b valuation
Australia’s Canva has raised an $85 million growth round led by Bond Capital, the new vehicle of Silicon Valley veteran Mary Meeker. It values the graphic design start-up at $3.2 billion.
HarbourVest boosts Australia, New Zealand IR coverage
HarbourVest Partners has appointed Warwick Mancini as a principal with responsibility for investor relations in Australia and New Zealand.
Australia's BGH completes cybersecurity roll-up
BGH Capital is looking to bring scale, capital and cross-selling opportunities to the still fragmented cybersecurity space in Australia and New Zealand
Deal focus: Events focus delivers Affinity 2.6x return on TEG
Building a meaningful events promotion business was an early priority for Affinity Equity during its ownership of Australian ticketing player TEG. This transformation paved the way to a lucrative exit
Australia IPOs: Best behavior
Public market investors in Australia have fallen out of love with private equity-backed IPOs. It's in the interests of both to get along, but they must find a way to rebuild trust
Cortina targets $100m for Australia cross-border fund
Cortina Capital, a private equity firm that invests in Australian health and wellness brands with export potential in China and other Asian markets, is looking to raise $100 million for its debut fund, AVCJ understands.
PropertyGuru seeks as much as $256m in Australia IPO
PropertyGuru, a Southeast Asia-focused online real estate portal that counts TPG Capital and KKR among its investors, is looking to raise up to A$380.2 million ($256 million) through an IPO in Australia.
Anacacia backs Australian industrial consulting business
Anacacia Capital has invested in Root Partnerships, which claims to be one of Australia’s largest independent infrastructure advisory and project management firms.
Affinity sells Australia ticketing business to Silver Lake
Affinity Equity Partners has agreed its second Australia exit in three weeks, with Silver Lake set to assume control of ticketing business TEG. It follows a deal to sell a 35% stake in Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer business back to the parent company.
PE-backed Latitude targets up to $946m in Australia IPO
KKR, Värde Partners and Deutsche Bank plan to make partial exits through an IPO of Australian consumer lending business Latitude Financial, which is expected to raise as much as A$1.4 billion ($946 million).
New Zealand’s Fonterra exits pharma business to CVC
New Zealand dairy group Fonterra has agreed to sell its stake in DFE Pharma, a 50-50 joint venture with Royal FrieslandCampina of the Netherlands, to CVC Capital Partners for NZ$633 million ($398 million).
Skybound Capital acquires Australia’s Fair Go Finance
Hong Kong-based private equity investor Skybound Capital has acquired a 60% stake in Australian online loans provider Fair Go Finance for A$20 million ($13.6 million).
Australia leveraged finance: Best blend?
Two years ago, unitranche structures were a novelty in Australia’s leveraged finance market. Now they are an integral part of it. For borrowers and lenders, there might be no turning back
Core-plus investment: Expectations game
Capital-flooded markets and rising pressures to deploy have precipitated more flexible investment strategies in private equity. GPs must be careful when crossing between asset classes
YBF Ventures, Honeywell launch real estate tech accelerator
Australia’s YBF Ventures and US conglomerate Honeywell have teamed up to launch a Sydney-based technology start-up accelerator for the real estate sector.
Affinity sells frequent flier stake back to Virgin Australia
Affinity Equity Partners has more than doubled its money on Virgin Australia’s frequent flyer business, having agreed to sell back a 35% stake to the parent company for A$700 million ($480 million).
Australia's Quadrant buys control of online beauty retailer
Quadrant Private Equity has completed the fourth investment in six months from its newly established growth fund, with the purchase of a majority interest in Australian online beauty retailer Adore Beauty.
Australian superfund consolidation to alter private markets strategies
Australia’s pension market is ripe for consolidation, which will see the emergence of a handful of mega superannuation funds that leverage their scale to bring more investment activity in-house, according to leading industry participants.
Future Fund stresses risk-reward balance in private market strategies
Institutional investors “should be thoughtful about balancing risk and reward” as they deploy more capital into private markets that present liquidity and valuation challenges, according to the deputy CIO of Australia’s Future Fund.